Legacy of the Heart by Wayne Muller

This book has been such a joy to read. Pretty much everyone can benefit from reading this book as sufferings is a part of life, but it is directed toward those who have experienced abuse and neglect and other tragedies through life. However, the lessons learned can be applied to anyone and I think the world would be a much better place if we all lived life using the practices of loving kindness and mindfulness described in the book. Muller sums it up best near the end of the book when he wrote, “As we investigate the sorrows of childhood and their lingering effects on our minds and hearts, we gradually come to realize that we ultimately share our suffering with all the children of the earth. All beings who are born are given a portion of that pain, and all beings stand in need of deep healing, love, and care. Consequently, our healing is not just for us; the more we feel our place in the human family, the more we undertake our own healing as part of our love for all beings who suffer.”

Many of the clients I’ve had the joy of working with experienced many painful moments during childhood. These often continued into adulthood and were compounded by the abuse they experienced by their partner(s). Muller provides many important and effective tools and practices to help people recover from the pain they’ve experienced by the hands of others.

Additionally, Muller provides great insight into how painful experiences shape a person and what they do to a person’s personality, the way they view the world, and their behaviors. It is easy to attribute these behaviors to a fundamental issue found within the person, but that is not true and only serves to continue the painful experiences in life. Muller this shows that early experiences, and abuse perpetuated by loved ones leave a lasting impact on the person that leads to maladaptive coping skills and behaviors.

I recommend this book to everyone, as we can all benefit from reading it, but it is especially pertinent to survivors of abuse. If you have read this book and have some comments, I’d love to hear them. Please comment below. I’m an avid reader so I will continue to add posts about the books I read that I think are helpful for survivors. Have a wonderful day!